Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate on this detailed document. It is easy to look back, but when David Cameron tried to renegotiate some elements of Britain's relationship with the EU, if agreement could have been reached at that stage, we would not have gone through what we have in recent years. The foresight, unfortunately, was not there at the time. I fear that in the upcoming elections to the European Parliament there will be a bit of a backlash in some member states.

That will cause problems down the road. There is no point in us trying to duck away from that. Regarding the legislation, I understand the Government has to try to get it passed as quickly as possible. I do not think many Members will object to it or block it; they will, instead, be constructive. There will be amendments but that will be tabled in a constructive way. We should, however, have a question and answer session on this legislation. Everybody here, including myself, will stand up and talk for 15 or 20 minutes, then will we leave after that. It is important that we have a detailed debate and questions and answers as we near the end of this process. That is a matter, however for Committee Stage.

Regarding agriculture, it was encouraging in the past couple of days that the UK environment secretary, Michael Gove, stated tariffs would not be put on Irish beef if there is a hard Brexit. That is good news. It gives us some hope, especially those in the beef sector which is in turmoil at the moment. We need to be careful in this country that what we are doing is not about being one up on somebody or that this is a case of winners or losers. This is about trying to ensure our country's interests are protected. It is also important, however, that we do not kick someone when he or she is down because sometimes in that situation, there can be retribution.

We had a debate on live exports in the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine recently. Some of the live exporters attended that meeting and they believe the Government could push more live exports. Delegations could travel abroad in the same way they do for cattle that have been slaughtered. That is one thing we need to do, given the way the beef sector is at the moment. Farmers rearing cattle for slaughter are losing their shirts. That cannot continue to happen. If there is a hard Brexit, we need to ensure there is intervention and storage and that must be at a proper price. It will be no good to bid people worse than what they are getting now. This is also a time where careful language is needed. Some media reports have been ferociously alarming to farmers. We can see the impact.

Anyone who lives in rural parts of Ireland sees the knock-on effect that is having. Talking to people in the machinery business, one detects a fear to invest. We have got to bring confidence back into that area. It is ferociously important that measured language is used rather than extreme claims that it is the end for beef.

On top of that, there are lot of things we need to watch in the area of transport. I refer to hauliers and the need for international haulage licences. I note that a section of the legislation deals with that. There is a lot of talk about licences at the moment. Before we were ever in the EU, Ireland recognised that someone with a licence from England could drive here without getting all the variously coloured cards in the world. That is talked about with reference to insurance, but I did not see mention of the licensing issue in the document. Maybe I missed it or maybe it will be in the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport's submission. We need to recognise the UK licences for driving cars, lorries and all types of vehicles.

In the event of a hard Brexit, which it is hoped will not arise, it is said that Rosslare Europort will be upgraded because more ships will be going in and out. Regrettably, in 2012 the west, the midlands and the north west, where the Leas-Cheann Comhairle comes from, was excluded from TEN-T funding. The Minister of State who is present at the moment, Deputy John Halligan, was at the table when we got a commitment from the Government that we would get TEN-T funding back in the first three months. I remember being beside Deputy Halligan at the time. This is not about my back door. This concerns Cork, Mallow, Donegal, the A5 area, Rosslare Europort, Killybegs Port, Galway Port and Knock Airport. Those are the areas that are really affected. The Government made sure that Waterford would get core network status. Shannon-Foynes Port Company was included. That is good for Foynes and no one begrudges that. However, the network went from Foynes to Dublin and from Cork to Dublin, and it was to hell with the rest of the country. People in the south east, the midlands, the west and the north west were left out. I know an amendment is being put forward in Europe to get Rosslare Europort and Waterford Port up to that status. The Government must concentrate on that. In a committee meeting in recent weeks we were told that a new application would be made. In my honest opinion the Department does not have the will. If a person is not living in Dublin, he or she does not seem to live anywhere in this country. We must focus on that.

A lot of companies would come to Dublin in a hard Brexit scenario. What about rural areas like Monaghan, Cavan, Donegal and places right along the western corridor? We are reliant on agriculture. That is the reality. We have to make sure that air and sea travel is not disrupted. This will become more important in the event of a hard Brexit. We have to make sure that is all covered. I want to be very clear that I am no expert on fish, but we have to make sure that Irish fishermen are allowed to fish enough to make a living. It is hard enough to make a living out of fishing. I refer also to agriculture. Whether we face a hard Brexit, a soft Brexit or any Brexit, Members should consider the price of an animal for the past two years. An animal can fetch €200 more in England due to the red tractor mark. For some reason we are not able to get the same price for our cattle. I cannot understand it.

I refer also to Irish companies. We talked about Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland helping them. That is good. In the purview of the Minister of State's Department, the construction industry, especially in the west, lost a ferocious number of youngsters. Unfortunately, when the country hit a bang in 2008 and 2009, we lost the guts of 250,000 youngsters. Many of them came from the western shoreline, from Donegal right down to Kerry. They also came from other areas, but that is where a large majority of them were from. Construction skills certification scheme, CSCS, cards are needed to operate construction diggers, dumpers etc. They are recognised in Northern Ireland, here and in the UK. I presume that has been addressed. Those cards and certificates like Safe Pass must be recognised in both jurisdictions for the benefit of those youngsters. This is necessary to make sure that if someone gets a job, having come home from the UK, he or she does not have to go through the same rigmarole. One can go to the North and get the CSCS ticket for diggers, dumpers or whatever. It is ferociously important that we legislate for that. I know there is no point in providing for it in the omnibus Bill. We could go through it and look at different regulations. If we did that, the Bill would be over and back. This is why I say that we need to have questions and answers. This is not about catching somebody out. This is about making sure we have not forgotten some concern of communities around the country, especially one affecting our youngsters. For example, I refer to driving licences. So many youngsters working in London or Manchester come home through Knock Airport for the weekend. We must make sure that we recognise a UK driving licence.

There are also health concerns, such as the cross-border directive. From my understanding that has been resolved. That is a good thing. People avail of it to get procedures done. We must ensure that the cross-Border initiatives can be operated as before to help people on long waiting lists. We must ensure that this interaction continues and that there is joined-up thinking between our hospitals and facilities like Altnagelvin Area Hospital. It is ferociously important that we keep that going. This is about preventing a blockage. Before Ireland or the UK joined the EU we had agreements in place for years. We must be able to kick them into action to ensure smooth traffic between the countries. Whether we like it or not, we might have been fighting with them for years but a lot intertwines Ireland and the UK, between imports, exports, people and business.

One thing that has been forgotten is the mushroom industry. The mushroom industry in Ireland went through a lot of fluctuations through the years. Some 85% of our mushroom output goes to the UK. I am sure the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Creed, will be watching it. It is a very volatile business. It depends on demand, but it also depends on the exchange rate of sterling. It is ferociously important to make sure that the jobs in that sector are protected.

Regarding the Border and the Good Friday Agreement, some issues are out of our hands in determining our destiny. I worry about one aspect and clarity on it would be welcome. We are debating this legislation but, hopefully, we will not need it. I believe everyone here hopes that we will spend the next few weeks debating it but that, at the end of the day, it will not be needed and that a solution will be found. That is the wish of most people. However, we need to ensure that the people in Northern Ireland especially do not feel left out of this entire process.

Regarding pensions and social welfare payments, I understand departmental officials met their counterparts in Northern Ireland and the UK and that an agreement is in place that pension and social welfare payments received by UK citizens living here and Irish citizens living in the UK will continue to be made, which is welcome. There is some speculation that one will have to have a bank account in England and then transfer it across. Clarification on that for the people involved is required, especially among our elderly who will be getting pensions. There is a great deal of worry about what will happen in the event of a hard Brexit and whether the UK will fulfil what it said it would do. I believe that can be resolved and from what we have heard and read in the legislation, agreements will be put in place that will copper-fasten the current situation. That is welcome but we need to make that clear to the people and list out the different areas to make sure they are not in fear of what will happen.

What is going on now will not be over until solutions are found. There is talk that Article 50 may be extended. Hopefully, common sense will prevail and people will sit down together and arrive at a resolution to this issue. It is difficult for Ireland when two other parties are playing out on the field. We are almost like the hurler on the ditch watching events and we do not know what way it will go. Many people who have built up their businesses throughout the year are anxious and afraid they will lose their livelihood, none more so than those in the agricultural sector. In terms of aspects people might not even think of, there is a major worry that cheese and such products will end up being much dearer than other imports. In that regard I welcome the recent announcement that the UK will not place tariffs on agricultural products from Ireland. In recent years, English housewives have bought into the Red Tractor brand of premium priced English beef. I read media reports in the past week to the effect that the UK could be flooded with Brazilian beef. Bar a financial catastrophe, I do not believe the British housewife will move from buying Red Tractor, which is a premium beef product, to buying beef from Brazil and other such countries, the quality of which is fairly questionable on the basis of the evidence Ireland gathered over a number of years, as those countries do not adhere to the same regulations to which Ireland, other member states and, in fairness, the UK adhere. Providing the UK does not impose tariffs, and we have to take the government at its word, that announcement is welcome. It is important for the likes of the beef industry because we all know it is under ferocious pressure. It is on its knees and needs a great deal of help. When we consider the areas badly affected, be it from Donegal down to Monaghan and Cavan and across to the west, those are where the breeders of the good beef, as I would call it - the suckler cows - are located. We have to make sure they are protected.

I ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport to address the issue of TEN-T funding on which that Department has ducked and dived for the past two years. We need to ensure that as well as Rosslare and Waterford, the west, north west and the midlands, especially the areas along the Border, are included in that core network. It is up to our Department to do that. The EU has said it is willing to ease off on state aid rules and different aspects. When the EU is in a happy humour like that, now is the time to dig in and get done the things that are required in this country.

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